


How Do We Bear it?

by Offendedfish



Series: DC Reader Inserts by an Offended Fish [8]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Nightwing (Comics), Superman - All Media Types
Genre: 0.35/5 hurt, 4/5 snarking, Best Friends, Bickering Best Friends, Bruce is a butt, Clark's big uncle energy, DC can fight me on that, Dick is a smart ass, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Reader Is A Smart Ass, Romani Dick Grayson, beta'd by grammarly, it is either platonic or romantic, it really depends on what you want
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:20:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26598967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Offendedfish/pseuds/Offendedfish
Summary: An unexpected visitor shows up in the middle of the night to provide some well-deserved comfort.
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Clark Kent, Dick Grayson & Reader, Dick Grayson/Reader
Series: DC Reader Inserts by an Offended Fish [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1885726
Kudos: 61





	How Do We Bear it?

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [beat journalism](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20111440) by [dustorange](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dustorange/pseuds/dustorange). 



> a/n: 
> 
> This is another installment of the Dick Grayson x mercenary! reader series (?). These don’t have to be read in order since I honestly don’t have an order. This piece is set right after Dick gets fired. You can either read this as very affectionate platonic or romantic. It’s honestly up to you. This fic is heavily inspired by Beat Journalism by Dustorange whose prose I would gladly die for. It’s not completed but I highly recommend you check it out especially if you have a writer’s block. 
> 
> I wrote this story mainly because I wanted a comfort fic (My idea of comfort is comforting someone else. Bite me.) heavily featuring Dick Grayson getting comforted and Clark Kent’s Big Uncle Energy (DC can also bite me.). I also wrote this with one specific line needling my brain. The muses would not leave me alone ‘til I wrote a fic around it. 
> 
> warning: sass, cursing, and descriptions of injury. Kind of angsty.

_As best we can._

A soft, jerky rap at the door startled Clark and Dick out of their conversation. The sound hung threadbare and uncomfortable in the air. Neither of them moved to answer it. Dick felt his limbs meld into the now obnoxiously soft couch cushions while Clark twitched forward ever so slightly. 

It was 11 PM. Hardly a good time for a visitor. The kind you want at least. 

Unconsciously, Dick began to curl into himself making himself as small as possible which would have been a hell of a lot easier if he was nine. Hell, this whole situation wouldn’t be happening if he was still nine. It was dumb. He knew it. He shouldn’t be this scared not when he had Clark around but his hackles were drawn up as far as they could be. Clark tossed his a concerned look which just made Dick feel the need to shrink even more. This was definitely dumb but the paranoid part of his brain whirred to life. 

What if it was Alfie?

It could just be Lois.

But what if it was Bruce?!

His stomach tumbled at the thought. No, he wasn’t ready for that. Not yet. 

He dragged his hand over his face settling it over his mouth. His breaths leveled and he began to think. It was unlikely to be Lois. She would have knocked once then just come in. The knocks were too brief, unsure, and undemanding to be Bruce. The knocks were also too jerky and awkward and rude to be Alfred. It was as if the person on the other side was either not used to the action- considering his usual company, that seemed likely- or just felt awkward being there or both. Before Dick could think about it further, Clark was up on his feet and with a couple of strides, he was at the door. 

When Clark opened the door, he nearly missed you standing stark against the clean, well-lit hallway looking a little battered like you had just finished a bar fight. Considering how old you looked that was unlikely. You held up your arms mechanically as a gesture of surrender. 

“Hey there Su- Mr.Kent, I- I didn’t know you were going to be here,” you said almost evenly as you not so subtly try to peek through spaces of the door frame he didn’t occupy which to your amazement- and annoyance- was few and far between. You could barely make out the tuft of black curls sticking out from the couch. 

Your voice hit Dick with a pang of homesickness like a punch to the, well, him. Dick peeked out from the couch and instantly regretted it when you locked eyes with him. You stood there on the tips of your toes with your mouth twitching into a familiar playful smirk. He felt sick. His mind shuffled through a million emotions that you could clearly read even as you struggled to look past Clark. 

“It’s my apartment,” Clark pointed out, drawing your attention squarely back to him. 

You blinked and mentally kicked yourself for the slip-up. You heard Dick snicker in the room. You glared at him through the gaps, mouth pulling into a pout. This only made him snicker more. 

Clark cleared his throat refocusing your attention once again and somehow filling up the doorway even more. You could tell he was feeling protective of the bird or maybe that’s just him. Either way whatever happened to chase Dickie out of Gotham had to be something awful enough to drive him all the way to Delaware. 

Clark squinted at you. Something about you seemed familiar. He’s pretty sure, he’s heard your heartbeat somewhere before. He was searching your face taking in every feature when what looked like a snake slithered uneasily across your skin. If it startled him, he didn’t show it even as it disappeared behind your ear. 

“Have we met?”

Your mind short-circuited. “Oh yeah, uh- you threw me through a wall once,“ You said looking up at him with a devilish twitch in the corner of your lips before shrugging sheepishly seeing the confusion in his face. "That really doesn’t narrow it down, huh?” You laughed nervously. Clark frowned, opening his mouth to-

“(y/n)! Aren’t you supposed to be- oof- in the Congo or something?” Dick asked squishing past Clark through some circus sorcery you’re sure. 

“Bangladesh,” You corrected and frowned at the sight of his broken fingers. He flinched thinking of hiding them maybe tucking them into his pockets but from the reprimanding look in your eyes, he knew it was too late. Instead, he met your gaze head-on settling them at his sides. You huffed at him and continued. “Well, technically, I might be a little grounded-” He let out a breath through his nose. You made a small affronted noise. “-Pops is still mad about the ‘incident’ in Vientiane, so I can’t leave the country. Sooooooo I thought I’d check on you, ”

“The hell did you do?”

“Why do you assume I did anything?”

Dick grinned at you raising a brow giving you a look that simply translated to ‘because it’s you’. 

“Mmmmmhmmmm”

“I didn’t do anything,”

“Uhuh-”

“I-” You sighed. “Ok, I accidentally broke our client’s nose,”

“Accidentally,” Dick echoed mockingly, drawing air quotes with his unbroken fingers. You stuck your tongue out petulantly making Dick grin wider in some sort of a petty triumph. He felt his mind lull into the easy banter between the two of you before his mind was harshly dragged back a sense of dread. After all, if you had found him who was to say Bruce hadn’t found him yet either. 

“Sooo, how’d you find me?” Dick asked, keeping his tone casual as he crossed his arms and leaned into the door frame. He winced feeling his still broken ribs protest at the pressure. A flash in your eye and a flick from the snake’s tail swimming on your neck told him that you hadn’t missed it. A frown twisted on your lips but you flatten it along with the long lecture in the back of your throat. Biting your cheek you hummed performatively as if turning his question over in your mind. It was a stalling tactic you did especially when you were feeling petty. 

“The tea leaves told me you’d be in Metropolis,”

“Tea leaves? Really? That’s your investigation method?” Dick snorted, eyeing you skeptically. He wouldn’t put kitchen witchcraft past you considering how much time you spend in the kitchen. But seriously? 

“Well, I’m sorry Dick Tracey, don’t exactly have a Batcomputer laying around-” You didn’t miss how he flinched at that but you pressed on. “And I’ll have you know that beverage based fortune-telling is a high art form, Grayson,”

Dick looked at you incredulously, drumming his fingers, and arching his brow.

An eternity passes. The tension in the air thickens like nectar as you glower at each other. As Clark thinks to intervene, your faces break into a conspiratory sort of smile, the kind best friends share with each other when an inside joke has been told. Dick could feel Clark’s posture loosen behind him. Dick let out a relieved breath he didn’t know he was holding in. Whether you noticed or not, you made no show of it. Instead, you sighed, rolling your shoulder as you jam your hands into your hoodie. 

“It was Roy wasn’t it?”

“Nah. It was the other red-head, Waldo,”

“Wally,”

“Exactly what I said,”

Dick rolled his eyes at you blowing air out of his nose almost sounding like a laugh. His smile tilted into an amused lopsided grin. You also rolled your eyes in mock annoyance. 

“Shouldn’t you be good at remembering people, Wilson?” Clark frowned at the name. He’d heard it before. He just wasn’t sure where but he had his suspicions. 

“I’m off the clock,” You huffed burrowing your hands deeper into your hoodie and looking away as you kicked nonexistent dirt with your well-worn shoes. 

“Are your brain cells off the clock too?” Dick teased way too smugly. 

“To be faaaiiir, you have an army of red-heads at your beck and call-”

“I do not-”

You opened your mouth readying another jab-

“You two should probably take this inside,” Clark suggested reminding you of his presence. It made you flinch in surprise. Reflexively, you turned to Dick who just shrugged. You turned to Clark who was now smiling warmly at you. It was a disarming sort of smile that was meant to soothe your nerves but it only drew your shoulders together all your prior anxiety resurfacing. The man was ready to throw down earlier now he looked like he was gonna give you cookies. 

What the fuck?

“Ya sure?”

“‘Course, any friend of my nephew’s is welcome to stay,” Your shoulders droop, not really sure how to respond to such a warm thing. You could do nothing but surrender to the absolute wholesomeness that was Superman. You nod dumbstruck trying to digest the information as you fall into step with Dick. “Uncle Clark, huh?” You teased nudging Dick’s shoulder gently with your own. His smile softened fondly. “Lucky,” you hissed your voice absent of any actual bite. 

“Could be your uncle too if you get Wonder Woman to adopt you,” he teased. 

“Pfft, yeah right. Next, you’ll suggest I ask Bats to adopt me. Got any extra hot pants laying around, boy wonder?” You prodded. Dick stiffened again but he laughed trying to play it off. You glowered at him, but he shrugged it off as he plopped on to the couch. 

You plopped onto the couch next to Dick still leveling him your best Alfred impression. Sadly, you clearly needed practice since Dick only looked at you innocently as he tossed a piece of popcorn into his mouth. You could feel a snarl forming in the back of your throat when he continued to toss popcorn into his mouth. Dick opened wide as he tossed a piece into the air but Yasiri leaped from your skin to snatch it up, her red scales shining iridescent under the soft glow of fluorescent lights. The rest of her long thin body manifested coiling loosely over your shoulders. Dick glared at her clearly unamused but Yasiri simply flicked her tongue at him. 

Your moment of victory was cut short when you felt Clark’s eyes boring into Yasiri’s uniquely patterned back. Anyone could recognize the cascade of golden flowers festooned on burgundy scales especially if you’ve felt her venom. 

Slowly, you turned. You saw as the recognition clicked into place. All the disparate pieces coalesced into, what you knew to be, an ugly picture. You could do nothing but brace yourself. The thought of that warm, warm smile turning to disgust or hate gouged out your innards. Yasiri coiled her body around you as she raised her head ready to strike. You swallowed the lump in your throat and closed your eyes waiting for those words. 

“What would you like to drink?” Clark asked mildly, raising a mug as if nothing had happened. 

“Tequila,” You stammered out stupefied by the turn of events. Clark frowned at you gently urging you to try again. Snickering, Dick nudged you with his shoulder. “Hot chocolate?” You tried and Clark smiled agreeably. You weren’t entirely sure what just happened but you weren’t about to turn down a warm drink. 

Clark handed you both your mugs settling himself on the recliner with his own. You raised your mug a little higher to let Yasiri enjoy the steam from the mug as it rose. Dick seemed to enjoy his cup just fine even if it wasn’t the usual recipe. You almost felt bad but you pressed on. 

“So what’s up?”

“The sky,”

You frowned at him holding it longer than he expected. It was a staring contest. 

“It’s complicated,” He sighed finally. 

“One of us is an acolyte of the flying furry and the other is a badass mercenary with tattoos that can come to life and we’re both sitting in Superman’s living room drinking his hot chocolate, try,”

“You definitely sold me short," He laughed but you could see how he curled. 

You sighed loud and unnecessarily dramatic. "Fine. Keep your secrets- but ya at least gotta tell me who renovated your face," 

Dick smiled. "Kay, tell who you left bleeding in the back of a bar then," 

"Green Arrow," 

"Bullshit," 

"So who renovated your face?" 

"Aquaman," 

"No shit- Somehow that sounds worse than Green Arrow," 

"You try fighting a dolphin!" 

"You think I haven’t tried?!”

And so the game began. You two both had this problem where you didn’t like to talk about what’s wrong. For Dick, it was a matter of being too kind for his own good but for you, it was a matter of pride and bravado. He begged to differ but you gently urged him to shut his face. On and on you two would go on tall tale after tall tale, sussing out the crumbs of truth from each tale ‘til you had pieced the entire thing together without having to say anything. 

Clark’s face looked more amused than anything as you called each other’s bluff. He was sharp. He could clearly tell what was going on between you two. Maybe he would try it with Bats though you highly doubt it would work. Would be funny if it did though. 

The truth he’d gathered is that you had lost your temper again which wasn’t entirely wrong. You had lost your temper but that wasn’t the reason you had a scuffed up face. 

The truth you had pieced together was that it had everything to do with spooky and spandex. 

You went on for a good hour or so trying to squeeze out information. Clark even threw in a few needling questions for the both of you. It was a different sort of interrogation than the one you were both used to. Gentle and coaxing. It had gotten Dick a couple of times and it definitely threw you for a loop. It was a pretty good technique all things considered and you were kind of pissed but it was sort of hard to be pissed at Superman for long especially since he looked so concerned for both of you. BOTH of you. 

What the hell? 

Be cautious of me damn it!

I shot you with bullets. Actual goddamn bullets! They weren’t even sissy bullets either. Superman- Clark- was unsettling. 

In an unexpected turn of events, Dick caved in. 

“He fired me," Verbalizing it somehow made it worse. It stung more. Solid and lancing. Dick’s chest roiled. His face pinched. The beginnings of tears forming in his eyes. 

Hadn’t he cried enough?

Dick leaned into your shoulder and pressed his forehead to the steady pulse beating in the flesh of your throat. You let him. You leaned your head against his, pressing your cheek against his wild hair listening to him as he sniffled into your shoulder without comment. You knew he was trying his best not to cry, not to somehow be inconvenient to either you or Clark. As if he ever was. You felt him burrow his face into your shoulder and press more into your side; his face was now completely hidden from Clark. You nuzzled your cheek into his hair in a practiced gesture as you felt a strained breath fan against your cool skin. Restlessness, embarrassment, vulnerability rippled through his body making him quake. The beginnings of tears welled in his eyes, still, you made no comment. You simply pressed your nose and mouth into his hair making yourself as stable and steady as he needed. 

Dick doesn’t know exactly when he started crying or how long he cried. Dick just suddenly felt a decade’s worth of exhaustion washing over him as you murmured words of comfort in broken Romani into his hair. He smiled weakly into your skin greedily soaking up all the tenderness you were willing to give him. 

When his eyes were dry, Dick shifted settling into a more natural position still pressed as close to you as possible. When you made no move to leave or put space between the two of you, he let out a shaky breath whether it was purely from relief or exhaustion he wasn’t sure. He let his eyes slide shut. You twist to press a kiss to his forehead which drained whatever remaining energy kept him awake. He murmurs a quiet thank you before he falls asleep. 

Your teeth released your cheek. It was the only way you staved off the obvious ‘you can’t fire orphans’ joke bubbling in the back of your throat. You made a mental note to kick Batman’s ass when you inevitably crossed paths with him again. But for now, all you wanted to do was let your bird rest. You looked to Clark silently asking if you could stay the night. He smiled and nodded and wrapped a spare blanket around you two. With a yawn, you thanked him. You entwined your fingers with Dick’s carefully hidden under the protection of the blanket. You pressed another kiss into his hair and silently wished him good night as you yourself began to drift off. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!


End file.
